


In his Heart and Bones

by Daughter_of_Scotland



Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV)
Genre: Coldwave exchange, Deaf!Len, M/M, The team is full of assholes, deafness, except Jax
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-15
Updated: 2017-07-15
Packaged: 2018-12-02 12:07:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,830
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11509122
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daughter_of_Scotland/pseuds/Daughter_of_Scotland
Summary: Len comes back from the Oculus, but something is very wrong.





	In his Heart and Bones

**Author's Note:**

  * For [icewhisper](https://archiveofourown.org/users/icewhisper/gifts).



> This is for Ice-Whisper for the Coldwave exchanged.  
> I was very apprehensive about writing about deafness, as I have no experience with it at all, and then real life slammed me and it turned out very rushed, I'm so sorry, hope you like it anyway!

Screaming.

 

When the Oculus exploded, that was all that remained. Bright light and screaming. 

He didn’t know whose screams it was - maybe his, maybe the Time Masters, maybe Time itself - but it was loud and ongoing. Never ending. Eternal.

 

When it did stop, everything stopped. The light was gone, replaced by darkness, and the screams… He sighed. No more screams. He faded.

 

***

 

When he wakes up, he’s looking at the familiar ceiling of the  _ Waverider _ ’s infirmary. He’s not sure how he got there, but his usual fight or flight response immediately lessens. If he’s on the  _ Waverider _ , he’s safe.

 

It is still so very quiet and he wonders if it’s nighttime and no one is watching him - weird, seeing as he expected Mick to be here. Is Mick okay? 

 

He fidgets and looks around a bit more. Oh. There he is.

 

Mick is standing next to Ray and Stein, arguing. There is also another guy he doesn’t recognize.

 

Weird. He still can’t hear anything. Maybe Gideon made him some heavy-duty earplugs; his ears feel very stuffed and cotton-y, too. He wonders if he should call out, but he’s so tired… 

 

He closes his eyes again and sleeps.

 

***

 

“What do you mean, you can’t fix him?”

 

Mick’s eyes are bloodshot and he’s swaying on his feet, but Gideon’s admission keeps him upright. 

 

“I’m sorry, Mr. Rory,” her soothing voice comes from the ceiling. “Mr. Snart’s DNA is not the same as it was when we left for this journey. The Oculus changed something fundamentally and I can’t reverse it.”

 

“In layman terms, that means -” 

 

“I know what it means,” he growls at Stein. “It means he’s Len, but not completely. Something is different; maybe he’s from another Earth or another Timeline, but she can’t fix him.”

 

Stein looks surprised - Mick wonders, not for the first time, when they all forgot he used to have his own time ship.

 

“Well, maybe it won’t be so bad,” Ray states, ever the optimist. “We won’t know until he wakes up.”

 

“Will we bring him back to 2016 then?” Nate asks. “I mean, he’s not much use to the team like this.”

 

Mick stares at him. “Don’t let him hear you say that.”

 

Nate shrugs. “Well, the way I see it, there’s no danger of him hearing anything I say.”

 

Mick punches him in the face so quickly, his steel skin doesn’t even blink into existence before he falls to the ground.

 

***

 

When Len wakes up the next time, it is still silent. He opens his eyes and turns his head slightly to the left.

 

Mick sits in a chair next to his bed, reading a book. Len can’t see the title, so it must be one of Gideon’s produced ones.

 

But he knows how Mick sometimes reads aloud to himself, when it’s really important, and right now Mick’s lips are moving. And Len can’t hear anything.

 

Something is very wrong.

 

“Mick,” he says, but he can’t hear himself saying it. But Mick head snaps up so he must have been audible. Just not to himself.

 

He imagines Mick is saying his name, the way his lips move. It’s a familiar pattern.  _ Len. Lenny. Are you okay? _

 

“I’m okay,” he answer the unheard question. “But I can’t hear anything.”

 

Mick’s face shutters but he nods. So he knows. Len nods back. It’s okay. He understands.

 

Mick reaches for a notepad and a pen next to Len’s head and flips it open. There was apparently some pre-writing going on because he just turns it over for Len to read.

 

_ I’m so glad you’re not dead. I missed you. Never do that to me again, you asshole. _

 

Len smirks but nods, finding Mick’s eyes. “Never again,” he promises.

 

_ Good! _ Mick mouths/says and then flips open another page, showing it to him again. 

 

_ Your eardrums are completely blown out, _ it says in Mick’s heavy hand. No need to beat around the bush, not with Len.  _ There’s nothing left. You won’t ever hear again. _

 

Len frowns. “Gideon?” he asks and looks at the next page Mick turns to him.

 

_ She says there is nothing she can do. Whatever happened isn’t an injury; it changed your whole being. The DNA samples from before won’t work anymore. _

 

That… That is not good. Len starts to shake a bit. He had figured that Gideon could fix this quickly. But now… Never hearing again?

 

_ Calm down _ is shoved under his nose and Len blinks. Looks back at Mick who grits his teeth. 

 

Mick mouths the words he says next, slow enough for Len to understand:

 

_ I will find a way. We will fix this. _

 

Len stares at him. At the fire in his eyes, the belief. And Len nods. Because if Mick believes like this, if he looks like this… They will find a way.

 

He smiles, reaches out. Mick grabs his hand easily and holds on tight.

 

“You will find a way,” Len says, putting all the surety he can in the words.

 

Mick nods.  _ I will _ .

 

***

 

Gideon declares Len fit to be released just a few hours after he woke up and talked to Mick. He moves back into Mick’s room - staring around at the mess and looking fucking  _ betrayed _ \- and then moves to the bridge.

 

Mick follows him - planning to clear up his room with a stab of guilt - and sees the faces of the team when they enter.

 

Sara has such an amount of pity in her gaze, he’s pretty sure Len would punch her if he felt up to it.

 

Amaya and Nate look uncomfortable, but so does Stein.

 

Ray hesitates, unsure what - if anything - to say.

 

Jax immediately walks up and holds out his hand. 

 

“Glad to have you back, man,” he says, slowly and looking straight into Len’s face so he can read his lips, before pulling Len into a hug with the handshake, clapping his back.

 

Mick grins. He always knew he liked the kid. And the kid liked Len.

 

“Mr. Snart, how good to have you with us again,” Stein starts, speaking to the table more than Len. “We all mourned you very much and -”

 

“He can’t hear you, Professor,” Mick interrupts with an eyeroll, hand on Len’s shoulder. “And stop lying, all of you forgot him easily enough. Tried to replace him.”

 

He doesn’t look at Ray but sees him flinch anyway. He does see Len frown and look calculating between them.

 

_ Later _ , he mouths at him and Len nods. Mick is glad they were always good with silent clues - comes from being partners for decades - and not much is changing for them in that regard.

 

Len turns to the two members of the team he doesn’t know. “Nice to meet you, name’s Leonard Snart,” he says. His drawl is still the same, not impacted by his hearing loss at all. Mick wonders if it will stay that way.

 

“I  _ hear _ you’ve made quite your space in the team.”

 

Mick snorts, and so does Jax. The kid and he share an amused look. Len’s back alright, changed DNA or not. 

 

Amaya blinks while Nate frowns.

 

“I don’t…” Amaya says and stops, looking at Mick a little helplessly.

 

He snorts. “That’s just the way he is, don’t worry ‘bout it,” he says, catching Len’s eyes. “No teasing the newbies.”

 

Len shrugs. “You’re no fun.”

 

Nate’s frown deepens. “How can he understand you?” he demands. “He’s deaf!”

 

Mick scowls at him. “Yes. And he can read lips when you talk slowly enough and let him see you. Not that complicated a process, pretty.”

 

Len is looking around again, ignoring the squabbling he can’t be a part of.

 

“Where’s Rip,” he asks after a moment.

 

The others look at each other.

 

“We don’t know,” Sara says, making a point to speak slowly and clearly in his direction. “There were some… Complications and we were scattered. Rip’s been missing since then.”

 

Len frowns, tapping his fingers on his leg the way he always does when he’s thinking.

 

“Did Gideon try to trace him?”

 

Sara nods but doesn’t say anything.

 

“Have you tried to go back to the Vanishing Point?” Len asks next. “Maybe he went looking for survivors or more tech and got lost?”

 

They share another look.

 

“It’s a start,” Ray says, shrugging.

 

Sara nods. “Right. Good idea, Len. Knew why we missed you.”

 

She turns to the captain’s chair and misses Len’s frown and glance at Mick.

 

Mick shakes his head and looks up when Gideon starts to say something, making sure Len notices. He looks up, too, and smiles when he sees her words projected to the ceiling for him to read.

 

“I don’t recommend flying to the Vanishing Point at this moment. The area is still unstable and your flying skills, Captain Lance, won’t be enough.”

 

Sara stops and frowns and shrugs. “Worth a shot,” she says, looking at Len apologetically. 

 

Mick sees his calculating look and knows exactly what’s coming.

 

“Why not let Mick fly it?”

 

Everyone turns to stare at them both. Mick’s hand on Len’s shoulder tightens and he gets a sharp glance for that.

 

Stein is the first to speak - also in a way that Len can see and understand it, which makes this so much worse.

 

“Why should we? It’s not like Mr. Rory has the brain capacity to understand the fine mechanics of the  _ Waverider _ , much less fly her in hazardous situations.”

 

“Right,” Nate says, grinning. “I mean, he can barely keep himself sober enough for a mission.”

 

Ray nods. “Sara is the captain, if  _ she  _ can’t do it, while should he?”

 

“I don’t think someone with Mick’s… Control issues should be let near the fine machinery of this ship,” Amaya adds, shooting Mick a disapproving look - as if Len’s suggestion was his fault.

 

Mick doesn’t look at anyone other than Len. At the way his eyes widen and his brow furrows. The way his jaw locks.

 

“Right,” he says and Jax looks alarmed at the coldness in his voice. Good. The kid has a shred of sense left.

 

“Well, Mick, seems like it’s time for us to leave,” Len continues without another glance at the team. “Pack up, we’re taking the jump ship.”

 

Everyone shouts their protests (well, except Amaya and Nate), but of course Len doesn’t hear them. 

 

“You can’t just  _ leave _ !” Sara yells, disbelief all over her face. “We  _ need  _ the jump ship!”

 

“Yeah, really, Snart, I mean, where are you even going to go?”

 

“Mr. Snart, I really advise against this course of action -”

 

“Uh, guys?”

 

Mick looks at Jax who’s the one breaking up the shouting. 

 

The kid rubs a hand over his neck. “Look, Snart can’t hear you anyway,” he points out. “And… Why not let them leave. You were debating it anyway… He got seriously hurt and maybe going home is his best option…”

 

“Going back to being a criminal?” Stein scoffs. “When he can have the team and all of time? I understand why Mr. Rory would like to go, being a criminal is the height of his career, but Mr. Snart has a higher appreciation for the better things in life and -”

 

“Where Len goes, I go,” Mick interrupts him. “He wants to leave, we leave. You want to run around pretending to be hero, be my guest. I have my partner back. And we’re going to try and find a way for him to get his hearing back, which is, frankly, way more important to me than any of you or your complaints. No offense, kid,” he adds, looking at Jax.

 

He shrugs. “None taken, I get it. The jumpship has a code you can use to send it back to us, it’s STARLORD.”

 

Mick snorts and shakes his head. “Fucking nerds,” he mutters and turns to the door. Len is long gone, probably packing.

 

“Mick!” Sara yells, anger pouring out of her. “You’re  _ not _ taking my jump ship!”

 

He laughs outright at that. “Try and stop me, blondie,” he baits her. “I can make sure the  _ Waverider _ never flies again if you piss me off.”

 

He looks all of them hard in the eye. “You all forget who I was. I had my own ship, more sophisticated than the  _ Waverider _ by a mile. This ship is the equivalent to an old VW Beetle compared to my Lamborghini Huracán.” He looks up. “No offense, Gideon.”

 

“None taken, Mr. Rory. You are indeed correct, the  _ Waverider _ is woefully out of date.”

 

Mick laughs again and leaves them to it. They can argue as much as they want - he and Lenny are getting of this ship and going home.

 

***

 

“When did they turn into a bunch of assholes?”

 

Mick looks up from his bag. Len is watching him, his arms crossed, and he’s still looking immensely angry.

 

Mick shrugs. “I don’t think they were ever anything else?” he points out. “They never thought I brought much value to the mission. And without you… There was no point in me being here.”

 

“Then why are you still here?” Len demands, stepping closer. “You could have stayed home.”

 

“No home without you out there, Lenny,” Mick says, slow and even. He cups Len’s cheek. “You know that.”

 

Len takes a ragged breath and clutches Mick’s hand with his own. “Mick… If we can’t fix this…”

 

“Then we’ll take sign language classes,” Mick interrupts him as gently as he can. “We’ll ask Rathaway for some pointers. Lots of people live with deafness, Lenny. We’ll make it work.”

 

He grins. “But first we try some of my ideas to get you back to default state.”

 

Len chokes on a laugh that’s more of a sob. “Okay,” he says, turning his head and kissing Mick’s palm. “Okay.”

 

***

 

They take the jump ship. Jax is the only one to see them off, but they don’t mind.

 

“Be careful,” Len tells him. “You’re smarter than they make you think, and worth more than all of them combined.”

 

Jax nods, throat visibly tight, and hugs them both. Len laughs when he hears the code and leaves him his favorite set of lock picks “just in case”.

 

They take the jump ship and go first to 2016, to Lisa. Lisa, who screams at them, and then hugs them, and then cries. They fall asleep in a pile next to the sofa on her plush carpet, amidst research about deafness and ASL. 

 

The next morning, they take the jump ship again - it’s a bit crowded with three of them in there, but it doesn’t matter, not really. They’re used to it, even though it’s been a while.

 

They collect Mick’s time ship, which is still in wonderful condition - “Lamborghini indeed,” Len says admiringly - and they start looking for help.

 

Team Flash promises to research.

 

Constantine is an asshole but he seems apologetic enough when he tells them he can’t help.

 

Rathaway keeps in contact, helps them with the ASL - Mick sucks it up like a sponge, Len has a bit more trouble, but Lisa is always there to correct his hands if he’s getting frustrated.

 

Jax sends a message sometimes, telling them about their adventures without specifics. Tells them how sometimes he just wants to leave, but then he’d condemn Stein to a painful death and he can’t do that. Team Flash promises to research that, too.

 

They all decide not to ask Damian Dhark for help - they’re not that desperate - but they go through the contacts Constantine gave them, all without any luck.

 

One day they’re sipping cocktails at a beach in Hawaii, taking a break, and Len turns to them.

 

“Maybe let’s just think about something else for a while,” he says/signs. “How about a heist?”

 

They plan. It is different, planning around Len’s hearing - they never realised how much they relied on it. But it works and when they are holding the Swedish crown jewels in their hands, or, in Lisa’s case, on their heads, they are so giddy and happy with relief, that Mick and Len barely make it to the bedroom, and Lisa has to fly the ship while drunk on Swedish ice wine.

It’s a wonder they don’t crash.

 

It’s been a year. A year and Len’s voice is changing - Mick and Lisa never tell him - when he uses it at all. Their signing is perfect and a great help for heists. Jax’ messages stopped.

 

And then Team Flash contacts them. With an idea. With a solution. With a  _ miracle. _

 

Mick looks at Len. Len looks at Lisa. Lisa looks at Mick _.  _

 

_ I think we’re good.  _ Len signs, smile on his face.

 

Mick nods. So does Lisa, hugging her brother for a moment. 

 

They don’t fly to Central City. Instead, they continue their plans for robbing the Louvre. They heard a goddess works there.

 

Len always wanted to meet a goddess.

 

He wonders if he’ll hear her voice in his bones, the way he sometimes can Mick’s, when he speaks directly to Len’s heart.

 

He can’t wait to find out.

**Author's Note:**

> It does not mean, Len will never take that miracle (which turns out to be DNA from his Earth-2 counterpart, so Gideon can restore his hearing), but right now he doesn't see the need. He's got all he needs right there, with or without hearing.
> 
> Comments are love <3


End file.
